


Gymnopedie

by sabahime



Category: Free!
Genre: Angst and Fluff, F/M, Mostly Fluff, Office AU, Reader-Insert, slight angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:35:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23105593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabahime/pseuds/sabahime
Summary: Office AU.When you first saw him, you didn’t expect to be this involved with him, especially because you belong to different departments. But sakura blossoms and chocolate ice cream happened.Or, a pure love story between you and Yamazaki Sousuke.
Relationships: Yamazaki Sousuke/Reader, Yamazaki Sousuke/You
Comments: 26
Kudos: 43





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> God bless Google Drive for letting me write this on my phone. Special thanks to Wynn for betaing every single chapter and the Introverts for reading.

The first time you met Yamazaki Sousuke was in spring. It was your first day at work, and it was his too. You were both part of the new batch of recruits that year, together with a few other fresh-faced young professionals. (1)

You were quickly drawn to him, noting his sharp, good looks and sturdy build. The crisp black suit he was wearing emphasized his features even more, and it took all of your willpower to not stare at him.

“I’m Yamazaki Sousuke. I’d be stationed in finances starting this year. My interests are swimming and listening to music. Let’s get along well,” he said, introducing himself to the group before sitting back down on his seat.

The rest of the group meeting was a blur in the business of the training, and you barely remembered anything about everybody else. Except him. Yamazaki Sousuke.

*****

The first time he met you was on a particularly sunny day in spring. You were walking in front of him on your way to the office, hair billowing as the spring breeze blows. You were wearing a crisp black suit, just like him, and he immediately knew that you too were a new recruit.

Through the group training, he later learned of your name, and your interests, and that you would be working in design starting from then on. He didn’t show it, but he was disappointed. He wouldn’t admit it, but he’d hoped that you would be in the same department as him.

He could’ve talked to you, but Yamazaki Sousuke is somewhat aloof, and too shy to start the conversation. Besides, the training kept everyone too busy to make small talk.

He barely remembered anyone from the group meeting but you, and the portrait of your back as you walked through the sakura trees.

It was 2 years before your paths crossed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) I’m not sure if you guys are aware, but Japanese recruiting system works differently. They do their fresh grad recruitment every year in spring, and all the fresh grads have to wear a black suit (we call them recruit suits). The fresh grads would then be grouped together and spend some time (iirc a week or so) together as they go through basic company training, before going to work on their departments.


	2. Ready Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note: since I like fashion, I thought it would be fun to incorporate some Japanese fashion brands in this story! You can look them up if you’d like, but above all they’re kind of just there for my personal enjoyment lol.

2 years went by in a flash, and before you know it you’ve gotten used to your job and the company.

You adjusted your Merry Jenny skirt as you sat on the chair in the meeting room, right across Yamazaki Sousuke. Around you were several of your co-workers, some from your department and some from the other departments. Most of them you know by name, but not familiar with.

“Good day, everybody,” Nakayama, the head of the finance department opened, “I’m sure you have been wondering why you were all gathered here. Let’s cut right to the chase. We’re starting a new collaboration with Saitou Souma. (1) I’m sure some of you are familiar with him. This time we decided to leave most of the work to several people from their respective departments.”

He paused and gave the room a sweeping look, “Suzuki and I will be keeping an eye on the project, but we’ll mostly be leaving it up to you guys,” he gave Suzuki, your manager and the head of the design department, a glance. “From the finance department we have Yamazaki Sousuke, and from the design department we have (Last name) (Name).”

Sousuke bowed a little, his striking turquoise green eyes meeting yours. You silently returned the bow.

“These two will be in charge of this project as project leaders, so while Suzuki and I will observe, final decisions are to be made by these two.” Nakayama continued, “Next Wednesday, we’ll be traveling to Sapporo as a group to kickstart the project. This group will consist of Yamazaki, (Last name), Kanda, Matsuzaki, and myself. We will be meeting in the office entrance at 10 in the morning before going to Haneda airport together, make sure to take note of the day and time and please do not be late. This meeting is adjourned. Please cooperate to ensure the success of this project.”

Everyone stood up and said their greetings before leaving the room, including you.

You went back to your desk, tidying up your belongings before realizing that it’s time for lunch. Grabbing your wallet and phone, you made your way out of the building, before bumping into your coworker and friend, Ami.

“(Name), let’s go grab lunch together!” She called. You nodded, and the both of you made your way out of the building.

You both settled in at a cafe round the corner and made your orders. “So, I heard you’ve been assigned as project leaders with Yamazaki-kun?” Ami questioned.

“Yeah,” you replied, “How did you know?”

“Oh, I happened to hear Suzuki-san talking to him about it. That’s so nice!” She whined, “I wanna be in a project with Yamazaki-kun too!!”

You raised an eyebrow, just as your orders arrived. “Yeah? Why?” You asked.

“Hmm, you probably don’t know this, (Name), since you don’t really care about office gossip,” Ami said as she snapped a few pictures of her food, “But Yamazaki-kun is pretty popular, you know. He’s tall, handsome, and is good at his job. Almost every girl is aiming for him. Especially the secretaries.”

You took a bite of your food before chewing thoughtfully. That’s probably true, you can see that happening. He’s tall and fairly well-built, and no one could forget those striking turquoise green eyes. Not to mention good at his job. But this is work, you remind yourself, it’s best not to hope too much. You’re not even sure if he knows your name before you were introduced earlier.

“Plus, you’ll be going to Sapporo with him, won’t you? I’m so envious!” She continued before taking a big bite of her hamburger.

Ami has always been a dreamer, and maybe a little too interested in everybody’s love life. You swallowed before answering, “Yeah, but it’s for work, so it’s not like anything will happen. Plus Nakayama-san and the others will be there. It won’t be appropriate.”

“Eeeeh, but you’ll be there until Monday right? So you’ll have the weekends with each other. I’m sure you can work something out.” Ami pouted before taking a sip of her drink.

You continued eating, deep in thoughts. Ami isn’t wrong, you thought, but it’s for work and while your office doesn’t have any restrictions about interpersonal relationships, you felt that it wouldn’t be a good idea.

“Ah well! Let me know how it goes and get me something from Sapporo, will you? Anyway, did you watch the show last night? Narita Ryo was so cool!” Ami quips, and the conversation quickly turns into your usual girl talk. (2)

You couldn’t shake off what Ami said from your mind though. At the very least, maybe you’ll have some chances to talk to him. That would be nice.

*****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) Saitou Soma bc I legit want the brand I’m working for to collab with him… I’m sure they’ll sell well  
> (2) WHO ELSE LIKES NARITA RYO???


	3. Chocolate Ice Cream

Ami would be ecstatic to hear this.

You had woken up early that day to make sure you wouldn’t be late for the meeting time, and subsequently the flight. You’d even packed your suitcase the night before, so you won’t be in a rush in the morning. You’d expected to be seated next to Kanda or Matsuzaki, since both of them are women. At the very least, you wanted to sit next to someone who you wouldn’t mind seeing your sleeping face.

But as luck would have it, you were seated next to Yamazaki Sousuke. You fidget a little in your seat, adjusting the seat belt and trying hard not to stare at him. Sousuke, on the other hand, seemed unnerved by the seating arrangement. All he’d been doing is look out the window. It had been an hour since the flight took off, and you still hadn’t made a single conversation with him.

It was right as you were about to force yourself to speak out of desperation, when the flight attendants handed you the afternoon snack of the day: a cup of ice cream. You sighed in relief as you observed the cup. It had been vanilla, and you silently wondered if you could have chosen the flavor.

“Hey, Yamazaki-kun,” you called out, “What flavor did you get? I wanted chocolate but got vanilla… Do you mind if we trade?”

Sousuke looked at you, and then his unopened cup, and then back to you. “I wouldn’t but too bad,” he raised his cup to show you, “I got vanilla too.”

“Eeeh, I wonder if they have other flavours, or if they’re all vanilla,” you pouted a little. You usually wouldn’t mind vanilla, but you were really in the mood for chocolate. “Oh well. I’m gonna go wash my hands,” you said, standing up and making your way to the bathroom.

*****

You have to admit, you’d taken a little more time than you usually would. You couldn’t help it—it was too awkward to just sit there! But as much as you wish you could spend the whole flight in the bathroom, there’s really only so much time you can take to wash your hands. So you dried your hands on a paper towel before disposing of it and making your way back to your seat. Thank god you have the aisle seat, so you don’t have to make that awkward shift to get to your seat.

You were about to open the ice cream cup and enjoy it when what it says on the lid caught your attention. It now says chocolate. You sat there in confusion. What happened? You could’ve sworn it said vanilla earlier. Did you somehow make a mistake? Is there something wrong with your eyes? You lifted the lid, making sure if the content is really chocolate.

Your confusion must have shown on your face. “Aah, yeah,” Sousuke spoke up, “You wanted chocolate, right? I asked the flight attendant to change it.”

It finally made sense to you. “Oh, thank you! I was so confused, I thought I made a mistake,” you laughed nervously, before finally opening the cup and taking a spoonful out of it.

Secretly, you worried over the entire conversation. You wondered if you’d asked Sousuke to change it for you, but at the same time you were too afraid to ask or apologize. Maybe he thinks you’re weird now… you hope this won’t make things awkward.

Man, maybe Ami was right.


	4. I Like Me Better When I'm With You

You don’t know how you did it, but you’d managed to spend most of the work trip without much commotion. What a miracle, you thought, staring at the night view as you sit outside of the bar. The group was having a meal and drinking at a bar near the hotel (“Team bonding,” Nakayama-san said) when you decided you’d had a little too much to drink and stepped outside to get some fresh air.

Maybe you should go back to the hotel early, you wondered to yourself. The party is sure to go on until morning, and you weren’t sure if you can handle that. Your face felt warm and your head felt light in the cold spring breeze, and you decided you’d go back early.

As if fate, the door next to you opened, revealing a familiar figure. It was Yamazaki Sousuke. “Hey,” he greeted.

You nodded and replied, “Hey.”

He closed the door before walking and squatting beside you. “You good?” He asked, “I noticed you took some time here.”

“Yeah,” you chuckled lightly, “Just had a little too much to drink. Figured I’ll sober up a little. How about you?”

He shrugged. “I’m alright. Just thought you might want some company is all.”

You grinned and thanked him, before falling into silence. The rest of the city seemed to speed by in front of you among the glimmering night lights. Another cold breeze blew, and you shuddered a little.

A few minutes passed before you decided to speak your mind, “Yamazaki-kun, are you usually like this to everyone?”

He looked at you and raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

You suddenly felt too scared to continue your question. “Mm. Nevermind,” You stood up. “I should go back to the hotel and maybe get some sleep.”

He stood up too, brushing the dust off his jeans. “I’ll walk you back to the hotel. Wait here, I’ll grab our stuff,” he said, and before you could answer he’d already gone back into the bar.

He came back out after a short while, with your belongings in tow. “Let’s go. I already told everyone we’re going back early,” he informed you. You nodded and thanked him, taking your bag from him.

Above you, the sakura trees rustled from the night breeze. “So,” he brought up, after a few minutes of walking in silence, “What do you think about the project?”

You looked down and stuffed your hands into your coat’s pockets. “I don’t know, I’m pretty nervous about it,” you mumbled, “There are two of us so it’s not as bad, but I’ve never been in charge of a project before. You?”

He hummed. “I’m excited. The team seems pretty motivated, but above all I’m excited to work with you,” he replied.

“Eeeeh,” you whined, “Don’t pressure me like that!”

He chuckled, a sound that made your head feel even lighter and fuzzier than before. The conversation quickly turned into nothing and everything all at once, filling in the gaps between the two of you as the rest of the world seemed to move at twice the usual speed.

Before long, you’d arrived at the hotel lobby, and yet Sousuke isn’t showing any signs of leaving. You figured it’s because you’re both heading up anyways, so maybe he’ll leave you once you reach your designated floor.

It was in the elevator when you asked him, “What floor?” You turned to look at him, illuminated by the bright, warm glow of the overhead lamps that light up the small space. In the background, a familiar piano tune plays.

“Aah, don’t worry about it,” he gave you a small smile, “I’ll walk you to your room.”

“Oh. Uh. Um. Okay,” was all you could muster, which was a good job, considering how drunk and flustered you were.

The walk back to your room was silent, but it was comfortable, and as much as you didn’t want it to end, there was only so much corridor. You stopped in front of your room, the oak door gleaming gently with a polished shine. “So, um… this is my room.”

He nodded, watching you carefully with those bright turquoise green gaze of his. “Yeah.” The look on his face was gentle with something you were too drunk to recognize.

You stammered and stumbled upon your words, suddenly not quite sure what to say. Meanwhile, Sousuke continued watching you, an amused smile on his lips. “So… um. Do you wanna… have some tea?”

Pause. Sousuke blinks, and a few seconds pass before you turn red with nervousness. “Y-you don’t have to! I mean, um, y-you know what, forget—“

He nodded again, “If you don’t mind.” 

It was your turn to pause, before finally realizing what he meant. You turned towards the door and fished your bag for the key card, fumbling with it for a bit before you managed to open the door.

You both walked in, and Sousuke made himself comfortable on the armchair that sits on one side of the room, right beside the bed. You quickly filled the electric kettle with some water and started boiling it, before tearing open two packets of Karel Capek tea bags and getting them ready. As soon as they were done, you placed the two steaming mugs on the small table and settled on a spot on the twin bed.

Unlike the elevator, the room was completely silent, and the glimmers of the night lights were faint behind the sheer curtain covering the windows.

“Do you usually do this?” Sousuke brought up suddenly, and your confusion must have shown on your face, because he continued, “Bringing random guys into your room at midnight.”

“Nope. Do you usually walk random drunk girls back to their hotel room?”

“No.”

There was a few seconds of pause before you both chuckled, that turned into full blown laughter soon after. “You must be popular, Yamazaki-kun,” you chimed in, fiddling with a corner of the pillow on your lap.

“You think so?”

“Well, I would think someone who’s kind enough to walk random drunk girls back home would be popular.”

The conversation picked up, and you talked to him about everything that came to mind--his favourite ice cream flavor, his swimming career, how he was like in high school, his favourite movies, and the kind of bands he listen to. In response, he asked you about your hobbies, the places you’ve traveled to, your favourite dessert, and the cat cafe in Shinjuku you often go to.

You haven’t had so much fun talking to someone in a long while. You barely even notice when the clock strikes 3 in the morning, having been too into the conversation, and you definitely didn’t notice when you’d fallen asleep, curled in your bed and under the comforter.

The next morning, you woke up to the blindingly bright rays of the morning sunlight and a headache, and if it weren’t for the two mugs—one empty and the other half-full with cold tea—you would’ve thought that you made up last night. It wasn’t until you came out of your morning shower that you realized there was a note held down by the empty mug.

090-1717-5572  
Hope your hangover isn’t too bad

Y.S.


	5. You Have A New Message

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to do a text chapter... this is based on LINE, a text messenger app that is the most commonly used in Japan. I would put in stickers but unfortunately the text doesn’t support emojis. Maybe I can insert kaomojis in the future.
> 
> In LINE, you can set your display name as whatever you want. I imagine reader would put only their first name, while Sousuke would put his full name.
> 
> Hmmmm also I put more thought into the timestamps than I probably should have lol. If you pay more attention to it you’d can imagine more situations lol. I imagine Reader was just bored and went like lol wtf why not when inviting Sou for dinner.
> 
> Also I imagine Sou is pretty relaxed/bad at texting and leaves some messages unread. Reader is more meticulous and replies as soon as they can.

_Monday, March 9_

8:23AM (Name): hey, this is (Surname)  
8:23AM (Name): thanks for last night  
8:23AM (Name): I hope I wasn’t too much trouble  
8:23AM (Name): I was pretty drunk  
8:44AM Yamazaki Sousuke: hey, no worries  
8:44AM Yamazaki Sousuke: the tea was good  
8:44AM Yamazaki Sousuke: ready to go back?  
8:50AM (Name): yeah, I miss my apartment lol

_Tuesday, March 10_

12:44PM Yamazaki Sousuke: my apartment is a mess lol  
12:44PM Yamazaki Sousuke: what are you up to?  
1:15PM (Name): just cleaning  
1:15PM (Name): I cleaned a little before I left  
1:15PM (Name): so it’s not too bad  
1:15PM (Name): but my laundry is piling up  
1:15PM (Name): you?  
1:20PM Yamazaki Sousuke: just on my way to the gym  
1:20PM Yamazaki Sousuke: couldn’t go when we were in Sapporo  
1:20PM Yamazaki Sousuke: so I’m making it up  
1:20PM (Name): ohh so hardworking!  
1:20PM (Name): I’m gonna go watch a movie  
1:20PM (Name): good luck with the gym!  
1:21PM Yamazaki Sousuke: thanks!

5:25PM (Name): how was the gym?  
5:25PM Yamazaki Sousuke: it was ok  
5:25PM Yamazaki Sousuke: pretty productive  
5:25PM (Name): that’s good!  
5:25PM (Name): say, wanna have dinner together?  
5:38PM Yamazaki Sousuke: yeah sure  
5:38PM Yamazaki Sousuke: what do you feel like having?  
5:40PM (Name): how about yakitori?  
5:40PM Yamazaki Sousuke: sure  
5:40PM Yamazaki Sousuke: you know a place?  
5:40PM (Name): I do! It’s in Shinjuku though  
5:40PM (Name): is that ok?  
5:41PM Yamazaki Sousuke: yeah sure  
5:41PM Yamazaki Sousuke: how does 7 sound?  
5:41PM (Name): perfect!  
5:41PM (Name): I’ll see you at the JR east exit  
5:43PM Yamazaki Sousuke: see you

_Wednesday, March 11_

12:33AM (Name): thanks for dinner today  
12:33AM (Name): I had lots of fun talking to you!  
12:45AM Yamazaki Sousuke: thanks for inviting me  
12:45AM Yamazaki Sousuke: let’s do this again some time  
12:45AM Yamazaki Sousuke: get home safe  
12:55AM (Name): I’m home!  
12:55AM (Name): you too!  
12:55AM (Name): gonna go shower and go to bed now  
12:55AM (Name): good night!  
1:23AM Yamazaki Sousuke: nights!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes:  
> In case the date confuses you, they came back from Sapporo on Monday, so in exchange for them having to be away for work on weekends, they got Tuesday and Wednesday off work. JR east exit is one of the exit gates in Shinjuku station. And since it’s office AU, I imagined that they would be working in Tokyo instead of Iwatobi.


	6. Saitou Souma

You don’t really remember when, but there was a time when Sousuke asked you out to lunch. Ami had been out on an assignment that day, and you figured it would be better than eating lunch alone, so you’d agreed.

You took him to that one cafe you’d go to sometimes, and he’d mentioned it was his first time there.

“I don’t usually go to stylish places like this,” he said with a small laugh.

You’d gotten the mozarella vegetables toast, and he’d gotten the salmon and avocado sandwich. He seemed to like the food, to your great relief. 

“Perfect timing,” he said while looking at the menu, “I’ve been craving for a sandwich.”

But what really cemented that moment in your memory was the conversation.

“Soooo, I’m gonna be meeting Saitou Souma next week,” you piped up after swallowing some toast, “For the project.”

He hummed before answering, “You must be excited. Are you familiar with his works?”

You took a sip of your iced tea and replied, “Yeah, I have a friend who really likes him. From what she’s shown me, he’s done a lot of dubbing roles but also sings. I’m pretty nervous about meeting him. Like, he’s so attractive, what if I say something weird to him? I don’t want him to think I’m weird!” (1)

He watched you with a look that you don’t quite recognize. “Do you like his type?”

You stirred your glass with your straw. “Hmm, I do think he’s cute but I don’t know if I would say he’s my type,” you answered, averting your eyes, “What about you, Yamazaki-kun? What kind of girls do you like?”

He was silent for a long while, chewing thoughtfully on his sandwich. “I like hardworking girls, I guess,” he’d said, still watching you with that look in his eyes.

“That’s too vague!” You laughed, “Oooooh, or could it be there’s someone you like?”

He laughed, rubbing the back of his neck, but didn’t answer. You didn’t press too hard, either, not wanting to put him off. He was still looking at you with that particular look in his gaze, but you dismissed it as a figment of your imagination, too flustered to think about it too much.

The rest of lunch that day went by with you talking to Sousuke about mundane stuff, but from that point on, you start hanging out with him quite a bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) I actually do have a friend who really likes Souma lol.


	7. Supernova

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you Wynn for betaing as always! I’m actually really happy with how this chapter turned out. I’ve been in a writing mood, so I wrote this in a night, and am gonna write the continuation soon too. Also, this series is ending in 3-4 chapters, just a heads up.
> 
> I feel like the Sou in my mind is different from the Sou that everybody else has in mind. It feels like the Sou that everyone else thinks of is really rough and abrasive and aggressive, and that’s ok, everyone has their own version of Sou after all. But considering that he gets lost easily, took pictures with a guitar at a music shop, and play fought with Rin over who’s better at telling bedtime stories, I feel like the Sou in my mind is a lot gentler, and a little awkward. I found a Japanese fanfiction where Sou is closer to what I have in mind, so this was a little inspired by that. I hope someone else appreciates this version of Sou in me, because I love him so much my heart hurts lol.
> 
> Theme song: Supernova (mucho remix) — Srip  
> Sparkle — Radwimps

You sit on the couch in your living room, nervously glancing at the clock. It’ll be 10pm on a Friday night soon, and there’s still nothing from Sousuke. You’d agreed to meet him for dinner when he brought up the idea last night. You’d pinged him again a few hours ago, asking if he’s still up for dinner, but there was no answer.

The TV drones on mindlessly in the background. You were too preoccupied with your thoughts at the moment to focus on the variety tv show you’d put on. Did you get ghosted? It doesn’t seem like him to ghost someone though. Ever since you took him to that cafe that one time, you’d gone out for dinner and lunch with him quite frequently. And he had never ditched you, or even been late, nor did he ever show any unpleasantness when you were late, either. From all your conversations with him, your impressions of him had been excellent. He’d even walked you home some nights. It’s hard to imagine him as someone who would ghost someone else.

You sighed before standing up and stretching. He has his own circumstances, you’re sure. Maybe he’s busy at work and hasn’t gotten the time to check his phone. Either way, it doesn’t sound like you’re going out tonight, so you decided to take a long shower.

The hot water was relaxing, and you were in the middle of changing into your pajamas when your doorbell rang.

_ Ding dong _

“Coming!” You yelled, hastily putting your pajamas on. You glanced at the clock on your way to the intercom. 10:30pm. Who could it be?

The sight on your buzzer’s camera took you by surprise. It was Sousuke. Hurriedly, you made your way to the door and opened it.

“Hey,” he said simply. The eyebags on his eyes and the tired look on his face gave it all away.

“Yamazaki-kun…! What happened?” You blurted out, concerned.

“I’m sorry, did I catch you at a bad time?”

“No no, not at all! Anyway, come in!” You shifted to the side to allow him through the doors to your apartment.

You ushered him towards your couch, “Here, sit! I’ll make us some tea. You can tell me what happened while I do that.”

He sat down with a long sigh, before loosening his tie. “It’s a long story.”

You turned on the kettle of water, and prepared two teabags in two mugs. “Well, I had plans with you, but now that it’s gone I don’t really have anything so,” you grinned sheepishly, “I have time.” You walked to the armchair just beside the couch and took a seat, placing your chin on the palm of your hand.

He began with a sigh, “My junior messed up really badly with one of our clients,” he said, removing his suit, “So we both had to go to their office directly to apologize.” He started rolling his sleeves up. “When we got there, we immediately tried to solve the problem the best we could, so we got into a meeting with them on how to best solve said problem. But then after the meeting their boss suddenly got into a really good mood, and asked us to go for a drink. It’s not like we could refuse, so I said maybe just a bit, but a bit stretched into hours, and we drank since 6pm and now I just got here.”

It was right then that the kettle finished boiling water, and you stood up. “So,” you replied, pouring hot water into the two mugs, “You’ve been drinking for 4 hours? Sounds tough.”

“I don’t usually go out drinking that much, so yeah it was pretty tough,” he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’m past the age where I’d go out and drink all night.”

“Yeah, you look pretty tired,” you placed the mugs on the coffee table.

He chuckled again. “I kind of am, actually. But I don’t suppose you’d still be down for dinner?”

You look at him for a second. “Well, actually I haven’t eaten anything, so I can eat.”

He grinned, and your heart skipped a beat. “Perfect.”

His grin, in turn, made you want to smile, so you did. “Okay then how about I let you rest while I dry my hair and get ready? You can take a quick nap.”

“Will that be ok with you? I’m sorry, I just don’t wanna impose on you.” He raised his hands, almost defensively.

“Not at all! I’d need some time to get ready anyway. I can’t go out like this.” You gestured to your pajamas.

He chuckled, “Point taken. In that case, I’ll happily take your offer.”

“Feel free to lie down on the couch!” You called out as you walked to your bedroom door.

He nodded before lying down and making himself comfortable, an arm over his eyes.

You took one last look at him before closing your bedroom door. Yeah, he’d never ghost you.

*****

Now what? It’s pretty late so you don’t want too much makeup, but you still want to appear decent. You decided to forgo the foundation, opting to just slap on some concealer and some high coverage powder. Then you moved on to some neutral coloured brown eyeshadows, brown eyeliner, and mascara. You decided to ditch the contouring, not wanting to appear too “done”, but decided to put on a little highlighter. Last is some lipstick. You crossed your arms, hesitating on the colour. If you were going out you would’ve chosen a bold colour, but it’s late and you weren’t even really on a date. It was just some dinner. So you settled on a my-lips-but-better pink beige and applied some on your lips.

You ran a finger on the outer lines of your lips to blend the lipstick. You look carefully at the reflection in the mirror. Satisfied with the amount of makeup on your face, you smiled and tidied up the scattered products on your vanity table.

You ran your fingers through your hair. You’d blow dried it earlier so it shouldn’t look too bad, but will this be ok? You sat there for a moment, contemplating. That’s alright, you won’t be out for too long anyways, this should do.

You glanced at the time on your phone. 11:30pm. Before you knew it, an hour had passed.

You stepped out of your room, gently closing the door before walking to the couch. Sousuke was still asleep, but had finished his tea, you noted. You quickly drank your now cold tea too, so as to not waste it. After you were done, you quietly placed the mug back on the coffee table. Then you moved to the couch, taking one last look at Sousuke’s sleeping form.

“Yamazaki-kun…?” You hesitated, but gently shook him anyway, “It’s time to wake up.”

He moved his arm, and groggily opened his eyes. With a hoarse voice, he asked, “What time is it?”

“11:30,” you replied, “You slept for maybe an hour.”

“Oh,” he said shortly before sitting up on the couch. He rubbed his face with his hands, obviously still groggy after waking up. “Hey, sorry, but do you mind if I wash my face?”

“Not at all!” You replied, “The bathroom is just over there behind that door. There’s some fresh towels on the rack beside the sink that you can use.”

“Thanks,” he said with a tired voice before walking to, and then disappearing behind said door. In the meantime, you sat on the couch, looking through your phone for any messages that haven't been replied.

About 5 minutes later, he came out, looking more refreshed. “Sorry about that,” he started, “I feel so much better now though.”

You smiled, “Ready for dinner?”

He nodded and walked over to you, and you stood up before following him to the front door.

“What should we eat though? At this hour nothing but izakayas are open,” you suggested as you locked the door.

“Ugh, no more izakayas please,” he said, “I’ve enough of that today.”

You laughed, “Hmm okay then since the weather is so nice, why don’t we go buy some food from the conbini and eat at the park nearby?”

He turned to you and grinned, “That sounds like a good idea, actually. I’d love that.”

“Then it’s a go!” You excitedly pumped your fist in the air.

*****

It wasn’t too long until you both came out of the conbini with two big bags of food and drinks. The park wasn’t too far away, so you quickly made your way there. And just to make it all better, no one else was around. Well, it makes sense, it’s almost midnight on a Friday night after all. Most everyone would be in bed, at home, or out in the city’s bars and clubs.

You opted to sit on top of the slides, and Sousuke sits beside you. Rummaging through your bag, you pulled out a can of calpis chu-hi and a mentaiko onigiri. You opened the can before taking big gulps out of it. “Mmm!” You loudly exclaimed, “That hits the spot!!”

Sousuke laughed, pulling out his big can of lemon sour and a salmon onigiri. He too, opened his can and took big gulps of it, before sighing and replying, “But you’re right, it does hit the spot.” He turned to grin at you, and you had to try extra hard to not show how hard your heart was beating.

You leaned on the slide’s railing, looking up at the dark night sky, with a few stars glittering. “It’s a good night isn’t it. The moon is so pretty. Nights like this are good too sometimes, I think,” you piped up.

“Definitely.” He looked up at the sky, taking a few more sips out of his lemon sour.

You bit into your onigiri, not taking your gaze off the sky. “Mmh, this is really tasty,” you said after swallowing a mouthful of rice and mentaiko.

“Really? Let me try,” Sousuke said, before grabbing your hand and stealing a bite. “Mm, yeah that’s good.”

Nervously, you took a sip of your drink, hiding your red face behind the can. You didn’t expect him to grab your hand like that.

“So how’s your week been?” He asked in between bites.

You swallowed another bite of your onigiri before replying, “Nothing much, really. A lot of meetings that could’ve been emails. Deadlines. You know, the usual stuff,” you shrugged.

“Hah!” Sousuke laughed, “Same, actually.” He raised his can to his lips, taking another sip of his drink. “The incident today was unexpected, but I don’t really hate it. In fact I was pretty happy our clients were so nice about it.” He took another sip.

You smiled, letting the silent hang on for a few more seconds before speaking up, “Yamazaki-kun, you’re really a kind person.”

He turned to look at you, finishing his onigiri and swallowing before replying, “You think so? Why?”

You took a sip of your drink, “Most people would think it’s a hassle, having to drink with your clients,” you said, averting your gaze to the can in your hands. “But you seemed almost happy to do it.”

He chuckled, “Really? I thought that was just normal. They were nice people, that was all.”

That seemed to kick start the long conversation, because you and him talked non stop through the night, without caring about what time it is, or if it’s too late.

You talked about a lot of things, the Saitou Souma project that ended two weeks ago, the new collaboration with Kimetsu no Yaiba, his juniors, and your boss. The conversation didn’t stop, even after he cracked open a new can of lemon sour, and you opened a new can of grape chu-hi. Before you realized it, the both of you had drunk quite a bit, empty cans scattered around you.

It was when the warm spring breeze blew some hair into your face, that you noticed that Sousuke froze while looking at you. “Yamazaki-kun?” You called out.

He stretched his hand out, pushing hair away from your face. It tickled, and you flinched before realizing how close his face is. Time seems to have stopped as you found yourself staring into his deep, turquoise green eyes. “Yama…” he leaned in, “...zaki-kun…?”

50cm, 30cm, 10cm, 5cm… you don’t remember who closed the last few centimeters, you don’t remember who kissed who first. All you remember was the warmth of his mouth on yours, the softness of his lips, the warmth of his big palm on your cheek, and the taste of lemon sour.

Above you, the moon glows mysteriously, a silent witness to tonight’s happenings.

*****

The sun’s rays were too bright, and the birds started chirping outside, and slowly, he opened his eyes.

He sighed blearily. Sousuke woke up to an unfamiliar ceiling, with an unfamiliar warmth in his arms. He stared at the ceiling, briefly wondering if his ceilings had always been like that, and when did he get a heated body pillow. He stirred a little, pulling his body pillow closer before closing his eyes again. No matter, for now he wants to go back to sleep.

Said body pillow stirred, and spoke tiredly, “Mmn, Yamazaki-kun?”

His eyes shot open in shock, and he jolted awake. His body pillow  _ spoke _ . He pulled the comforter away, revealing you in your pajamas, rubbing your eyes sleepily.

Dear god,  _ what happened _ ?!?!?

“I’m so sorry,” he began, and you notice he’s a little flustered as he looked down to check if he’s wearing clothes, “Did we…? What happened? I don’t really remember. I’m so sorry.”

You yawned lightly, covering your mouth as you sat up before you answered, “Well, how much do you remember?”

He sat up as well, running a hand through his hair as he stared at your bunny-patterned comforter, “Uh… I remember coming to your place after the izakaya, and then taking a nap here, and then we went to the park and ate food from the conbini… and…” he paused, covering his mouth with one hand, “Um… that’s about all I remember.”

You laughed weakly. “Nothing happened, really. It got way too late and the trains stopped running, so we decided to crash at my place instead.”

He was silent for a few seconds. “...really? How did we, um, on the same—“

You fiddled with one edge of your comforter as you spoke, “You got really drunk, so I offered you the bed and I could sleep on the couch, but you grabbed me and refused to let me go, so…”

Sousuke let out a sigh before covering his face with his hand. “I’m… I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it, I swear,” he felt so guilty about it that you felt sorry about it too.

“Oh, um, it’s alright! Don’t let it get to you.” You raised both hands, trying to show him it’s alright, “I completely understand.”

He stared at you for a moment, and you were almost too scared to ask him what’s going on. “...thanks. For… letting me crash.” He then smiled sheepishly, before pushing some hair away from your face.

It took you by surprise, and you flinched before realizing that you’re probably blushing really hard right now. You tried to play it off by looking away in the other direction and getting out of the bed. “Um!! I’ll uh, I’ll make breakfast for us, so why don’t you take a shower? You know where the bathroom is. You can use one of the towels in there.” Hurriedly, you stood up, trying not to meet his eyes.

In turn, Sousuke too got out of bed and stretched, “Yeah… that would be great. Thanks.”

*****

Sousuke went home not too long after you both finished breakfast and cleaning up, and you were once again left alone in your apartment. You sat on your couch with a mug of white peach tea.

Your phone buzzed, and you clicked it open as it continued buzzing with LINE notifications.

12:02PM Yamazaki Sousuke: Thanks again for letting me crash and for the breakfast

12:02PM Yamazaki Sousuke: And I’m sorry for grabbing you

12:02PM Yamazaki Sousuke: I hope I didn’t put you off

You sat there, contemplating as you stared into the screen of your phone. You put down your mug, and typed.

_ Do you remember the kiss?| _

You hesitated for a moment, before deleting it and retyping your reply.

12:04PM (Name): No worries! I hope you had fun

12:04PM (Name): Because I did! Both last night and this morning!

12:04PM (Name): Don’t think too much about it

You clicked your phone off before putting it down on your coffee table and turning on the TV. You decided not to tell him about the kiss. It will be your one little secret. Just between you and the moon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, your breakfast was pancakes and bacon. You don’t usually make breakfast as proper as that (usually you’d settle with bread or toast or yogurt, easy stuff) but you wanted to give a good impression for Sou!


	8. 忘れたくはないな、スーパーノヴァ

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don’t want to forget, supernova 🌌

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s been a while since my last update 😭😭 I wrote half of this chapter months ago, only to sit on it and finally writing the other half just 2 days ago! I wanted to finish this by Sou’s birthday but couldn’t make it in time 😅 I did get to set up a small shrine and took lots of pics and ate cake and chocolate though!
> 
> I’m writing another series but I’m going slow with it. I really really wanna finish this series though. Thank you Wynn as always for betaing!
> 
> This is a small tribute, but happy birthday, Sou. I love you the most 💖✨🎀🌌

You were in the middle of a haircut when your phone buzzed with LINE notifications.

The hairdresser went to grab a hairdryer, so you decided to check your phone.

04:22PM Yamazaki Sousuke: hey  
04:22PM Yamazaki Sousuke: what are you up to?  
04:22PM Yamazaki Sousuke: wanna drink and watch a movie at my place tonight?

You could feel your heart skipping a beat. It’s been a while since you felt like this. It’s been even longer since a man has asked you out. What do you do? What do you even reply? Is this a date? Considering that you’ve hung out with him so many times now, it’s probably kind of stupid for you to think that. But this is the first time he’s ever invited you to his apartment.

It took you a few seconds to even sort your thoughts out, and by the time you made a decision, your hairdresser was back with the hairdryer. Hurriedly, you typed your reply.

04:26PM (Name): hey! Yeah sure!  
04:26PM (Name): I’ll be there at 6PM, is that ok?  
04:26PM (Name): do you need me to bring anything?  
04:27PM (Name): let me know where to meet!

****

You stood outside the ticket gates in Koenji station. Several girls walked past you, laughing as the colourful dresses they were wearing fluttered in the wind. You felt a little self conscious, all of a sudden. You turned around to observe your reflection on the metal pillar. Is your makeup ok? Your mascara isn’t smudging from all the sweat, is it? You so hope your lipstick isn’t too overdone. You wish you’d had the time to go home and change, and maybe fix your make up, but there was barely enough time after the haircut. Thankfully you managed to fix your makeup at the hair salon, and your hairdresser did your hair. You still couldn’t shake off the feeling that your clothes probably aren’t cute enough though. Silently, you regretted not having worn that new dress you got last week.

You were so deep in your thoughts that you almost didn’t realize that Sousuke had arrived.

“Hey! Thanks for coming,” he said, a hand raised to say hi to you. He looked more casual today, wearing a tshirt and jeans with running shoes. It’s such a contrast to his usual pressed shirt and crisp suit in the office, and you let a silent sigh of relief. Yeah, you look fine, you’re just gonna hang out at his apartment, after all. It would’ve been weirder if you’d appeared overdressed.

“Hi! Not at all! Thanks for inviting me,” you replied, gripping the plastic bag you were carrying tighter to tide over your nervousness.

He took the bag from your hands, and before you could even protest, he took your hand in his big one. “Let’s go! It’s not too far of a walk from here. We can drop by the grocery store, I guess. I’d made dinner but we still need drinks,” he said as he started walking towards one direction, pulling you along.

You were too flustered to even think about anything, and it was all you could do to walk beside him. It felt silly. You’re not a teenager, and yet you felt like it was your first date all over again.

The rest of the walk was full of him pointing out places that he enjoyed or took note of, and you had to pressure yourself into not sounding weird or dismissive. He kept on telling you that he should take you to some of these places, and it made you hope that maybe there will be a next time. He didn’t let go of your hand the whole time.

****

Dinner was delicious. You didn’t think of Sousuke as someone who could cook, but you guessed that living alone all this while would make him good at it.

Sousuke had ushered you to sit on one of the cushions on the floor, and that’s what you did. Finally you had the chance to take a good look at his apartment, and you made sure to take everything in. You weren’t sure what you expected out of his apartment, but it was a little different than what he imagined. He didn’t have a couch, for one. His living room consists of a low coffee table in the middle of the room, with cushions surrounding it. The flat-screen TV sits on a deck facing the seating area, but other than that, the walls are mostly bare.

“Thanks for dinner, it was delicious,” you piped up, taking a look at Sousuke as he poured out drinks from the cans into 2 glasses.

He didn’t look up, merely replying, “Oh, no problem at all. I invited you after all.”

“It was so good though! I didn’t expect you to be able to cook so well.”

He chuckled as he put an empty can on the sink. “My family runs a Japanese restaurant. So I had to help out a little. I was mostly too busy with swimming though.”

“I see… that makes sense.”

Sousuke walked over and placed two glasses on the coffee table, one is full of peach chu-hi, and the other is full of lemon sour. “What did you bring?” He asked, taking out the box of cakes you’d brought as gifts from the plastic bag.

You almost forgot about that! “Oh!” You exclaimed, “Um, it’s just some cake. I figured we’d need dessert.”

“Oh thanks!” He opened the box and showed it to you, “Which one do you want?”

“You should choose, Yamazaki-kun! You’d made me dinner, after all!”

“Are you sure?” He asked, and you nodded. “Okay, which one is less sweet? I’m not very good with sweet stuff.”

“Hmm… maybe the cheesecake? This place is famous for their chocolate cake, but the cheesecake is delicious too!” You replied, grinning up at him.

He nodded before making you choose a cake. “Okay, let me prepare them. You can pick a movie. Don’t choose anything sad though. I’m not in the mood for crying,” he said, grinning that boyish grin that never fails to make your heart skip a beat.

Sousuke was already on the way to prepare the cakes on the kitchen counter, but you still turned away to face the TV in an attempt to hide the flush on your face. Distracting yourself, you scrolled through the selection on the screen, contemplating for a while before finally deciding on a movie that seems interesting.

“So… you said you were too busy with swimming. Were you in a swim team or something?” You spoke up.

Sousuke looked up from the plates to glance at you before returning his gaze to the plate. “Ah yeah. I was a swimmer for most of my childhood. Up until college, actually. But I decided I didn’t want to do it as a career, so I quit. I even got to the nationals a few times.”

“Oh wow!” You exclaimed, “You must have been good, Yamazaki-kun. What style did you swim?”

He picked up the plates and walked over as he answered, “Haha, it wasn’t anything much. I mostly swam butterfly, but sometimes I’d swim freestyle. Nowadays I go to the gym to work out and swim a few times a week.”

It didn’t take him long to reach the coffee table, and he knelt beside it to place the cakes on the white surface. Then he stood back up and walked over to you, before sitting down to sit behind you. Before you could even register it, he’d settled in and wrapped one arm around your waist.

You jumped and felt yourself stiffen, but it seems like Sousuke didn’t realize it.

“Y-Y-Yamazaki-kun?!?!” You stuttered, and immediately felt dumb afterwards.

His answer was to sniff your hair. “Your hair smells so nice. Did you put on anything?”

“Oh, uh, um, it was the hair oil, I think… I had a haircut before coming here and the hairdresser put on some oil on my hair,” you could feel yourself heating up, but pretended to not notice as you answered his question.

“Ahhh that makes sense,” he replied, tucking a strand of your hair behind your ear, “It does look a little shorter. You look good!”

It was all you could do to mutter a small thanks, looking down to hide your reddened face. Sousuke had a different mind though, and he leaned down, a hand on your chin to tilt your face up slightly.

It happened way before you could register it, but as soon as it happened, it was all you could think about. His lips were soft on yours, warm and moist, just like the last time. It was probably barely two seconds, but time seemed to have stopped for those two seconds. His breath on your skin, the taste of your strawberry lip balm, the warmth of his fingers on your chin… for two seconds, all you could feel was Yamazaki Sousuke. You didn’t even realize you had closed your eyes in shock. He pulled away after what felt like an eternity, and you found yourself staring into the deep pools of turquoise of his eyes.

“Yama… zaki-kun…?” You could hear yourself speak in a small voice.

“Sousuke.” He replied simply, a thumb tracing circles on your cheek.

“...huh?” aah, his eyes are so pretty. You couldn’t look away, entranced by the bright turquoise. They remind you of gemstones, or maybe sea glass. Have they always been so beautiful?

He chuckled, and the sound snapped you back to reality. “Call me Sousuke.”

“Sou… suke…”

He ran a hand through your hair, voice barely a murmur in the silence of the room. “Was that… okay?”

It took you a second to realize he was asking you a question, and you could feel yourself turning a deeper red, if that was even possible. You swallowed the lump in your throat, and nodded silently, cheeks still burning even as you closed your eyes to will the blush to die down. One breath. Two breaths. Yamazaki-kun was quiet, and not moving, his hands having stilled after your answer; so much that you've since started to think something was wrong. Hesitantly, eyes still shut, you tried to tilt your head up, only to be interrupted by a murmur.

“Thank god. I was so scared you’d hate it,” his voice was the softest you have heard him yet, and when your eyes snapped open, you found him smiling, a hint of pink on his cheeks matching your furious blush that's threatening to bloom once more. Again, now looking into your eyes, he repeated. "This haircut looks good on you."

His arms never left your waist that night.

(He insisted you crash at his place, even lent you some of his clothes to wear as pajamas. You found it hard to refuse, and so you relented. He grabbed onto you again, and never let go for the entire night. You found his warmth comforting. His bed smelled like him, like citrus, clean laundry and ocean breeze. The next morning you woke up to find out he had made you a Japanese breakfast with rice, tamagoyaki, grilled salmon, and miso soup. Then he walked you to the station. “With this, we’re even,” he said. He remembers everything this time.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) I left the movie out but tbh I imagined them watching Grand Budapest Hotel lol. It’s one of my favourites!
> 
> (2)Also I know he was injured, but tbh I feel like he wouldn’t have been honest about his injury.


End file.
